Review: Furthermore by Tahereh Mafi

Furthermore by Tahereh Mafi
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is a very lovely and whimsical tale about a very strange girl named Alice.   I tried reading this a few months ago and decided it wasn't for me.  It must have just been the wrong book at the wrong time because I ended up loving this.  I am so glad I took a 2nd chance on this book.  I actually decided to give it a shot after hearing some great reviews on the next book, Whichwood, and that sounded right up my alley.  I picked up an ARC of Whichwood and I must say it is much darker.  I'm about halfway done with it, so look for a review of it soon.  Furthermore was so great.  Mafi's writing is just so beautiful in this even though it takes a little while to get used to the silly vibe of the world.  She does such a great job with the world building and the imagery.

Alice is from a magical land called Ferenwood, where many of the inhabitants possess some sort of magical talent. Alice has a talent, but she resents it and she is sure it can't possibly be the talent she is supposed to surrender to the elders upon turning 12. The children of Ferenwood receive a task inline with their talents, and Alice decides stubbornly I might add that her's is dancing. She quickly realizes it is not. Enter Oliver, a boy who was tasked a year earlier and has yet to complete his task and asks Alice to help him. Alice doesn't like Oliver, because he insulted her for her lack of color when they were younger. You see Furthermore isn't only magical, it is very colorful as well, and Alice is very colorless. Oliver has been tasked to find Alice's father, who has been missing for several years. Alice misses her father greatly, and after her embarrassing performance and horrible treatment by her mother since her father's disappearance she decides to help Oliver on his task. Oliver's talent of persuasion doesn't work on Alice, and he isn't often honest with her, making it very hard for her to trust him as he takes her on a journey through Furthermore to find her father. They travel through multiple villages each with their own kind of puzzle to figure out before they can pass on to the next place to get to her father. The people of Furthermore are dangerous and their journey is quite perilous. I found this middle grade read to be a bit dark while also being whimsical. I really ended up loving it and can't wait to read the next book.